Free VSTs n ting?

Just started to produce and have the standard Cubase 5 default VSTs which I've messed about with and started to wrap my head around.

However, whenever I look up a how-to kinda thread everyone starts shouting about Massive, which is a ballache as I dont have the money to buy it and dont want to ruin my pc/steal from NI and run a cracked version .

Anyone got any decent free VSTs they use that they could suggest? Be much appreciated dun kno fi real fam.

Hi there, Id suggest picking up a few copies of Computer Music magazine, every month they have a dvd on the cover with an array of free VST's and lots of other goodies.

Alternatively, just type in free VST's into google, there's loads. Sorry I cant be of any more help and name any good ones as I mainly use NI Massive, and Rob Papen's Predator, both of which cost monies....

lets not forget gersic.com
that site has so many fking plugs its hard to even know what to download there is so much of it. thats my problem with vsts and digital and having the internet on your studio computer, there is so much stuff its impossible to know where to begin. i heard one guy would limit himself to using only yellow plug. or purple. grits suggested you could chose 1 eq, 1 compressor, 1 reverb, 1 delay, 1 chorus etc etc and stick to that.
which is kind of impossible as it turns out, after a while youre like 'ok just this one thing here' and pretty soon you got your fx channels filled with plugs again. restrictions are fun, specially when they sound just like you want it. like classic hardware. desk gain + emu or guitar pedals and synths and so. that stuff is fun.

I got on it a bit last night and went in on that TAL Noisemaker/Synth1 (or Crazy Japan Synth as I like to call it) and a few Kjaerhus Audio fx. Gonna have a play with the others when I get a chance too. So cheers to T:M n Groelle. Still don't have a fucking clue as to what I'm doing but I'm getting slowly better and after layering a few basses up they sound a little sexier.

Thanks for the lists as well, bookmarked them so I can go have a look when I get bored/angry with what I've got atm. Gonna try and keep it simple though like Logikz said, reason I asked you lot for some reccomendations was 'cos I didnt wanna d/l 60 synths and fx and realise that a. most of them are shit and b. I only know how to d/l a synth and use presets etc. Definately want to know how to make the sounds in my head not just make tunes out sounds I'm given if that makes sense? From my limited knowledge I'm guessing all synths act kinda the same yeah? Whats the difference between subtractive and the other types? A mate told me its alllllllllll about subtractive apparently?

Also that gersic guy......is he like a white Morpheus or something? Does anyone know if his leather jacket reaches the floor? I bet it does....

Yeah I think so. I had a quick look at the top 50 and saw all the options to search/see all etc... Links gone in my bookmarks folder for when I understand them a little better, as I mostly read the descriptions, think wtf? and d/l the best looking one only to realise I still don't know what I'm doing. Gonna try and stick with 3/4 until I understand them a little more.

Also if I want to play a sample across a keyboard so I can make a little riff with it. So its the same sample but different er...notes? How do I do that? Is it easy(ish)? If not say "no its well hard you bean get back to the beats n bassics and stop dreaming of a brighter tomorrow." Ill understand.

Yeah its easy enough to write some notes in the piano roll, however I have no idea how to do it in cubase as I dont use it. Alternatively, if you have a midi keyboard it's as simple as loading up the VST, choosing your sound and hitting a few keys

Yeah I have a little midi keyboard I'm borrowing off a mate till I ask Father Christmas for one. I'm fine with playing and writing stuff using synths for basslines and I made a little flute lick (which I got all excited about) etc, I have a sample of a girl going whooooaaaooaoaoa in a nice way that I wanna use and a few guitar samples but the only way to get them to fit I know off is to go into the audio menus and pitch shift by guessing how many semitones which is long. I've seen a vid of Danny Byrd with some samples cut up across a keyboard so they play the notes but with the sample if you get me? After doing that. I think when I tried to do it using the synth VSTs or Halion it has to be a patch written for it not just a standard .wav sample. I looked it up and it seems Short Circuit is what I want, or another sampler if anyone uses one, but when I looked at it I accidentally the whole thing and went back to trying to write something in the same vein as Chopper or Zinc (funky riff, basic but awesome sound, snazzy drums possibly a vocal sample) and try and carry the tune with my beats so I can have a good foundation for the messing about to sit on when I know what I'm doing.

theres probably a tuner on cubase that you can use to pitch under utility or something similar. as for chopping samples, just slice the sounds u want and assign them to different keys on your sampler, there should be a guide somewhere if it isn't obvious.